Tales of Lake Watercress: An Eeveelution Romance
by Sparky Jolteon
Summary: Deep in Sinnoh lies a big beautiful lake known by its inhabitants as Lake Watercress. Among many other wild denizens live two solitary Eeveelutions: a Leafeon and a Vaporeon. They're both fairly content with their lives, but can't help but feel a longing for something more. Discover what happens when their lives unexpectedly cross paths. Rated T for violence and more mature themes.
1. Welcome to Watercress

_Tales of Lake Watercress_

"An Eeveelution Romance"

* * *

 **Main Character Profiles:**

Name: Leafy

Species: Leafeon

Gender: Male

Age: 5

Type: Grass

Eye Color: Hazel

Fur Color(s): Tan, green, and dark brown

Personal Characteristics: Clever, jocular, brave, careful, loyal, etc.

Personal Interests: Gardening, hunting, cooking, crafting tools, sunning, etc.

Ticklish spots: Hindpaws, belly, ribs, etc.

* * *

Name: Aquamarine

Species: Vaporeon

Gender: Female

Age: 4½

Type: Water

Eye Color: Amber

Fur Color: Blue

Personal Characteristics: Playful, bold, compassionate, inquisitive, ambitious, etc.

Personal Interests: Swimming, fishing, exploring, observing others, playing games, etc.

Ticklish spots: Hindpaws, thighs, belly, etc.

* * *

 **Main Character Theme Songs:**

Leafy's Theme: "I Knew I Loved You" by Savage Garden.

Aquamarine's Theme: "Cherish" by Madonna.

Leafy and Aquamarine's Theme: "From This Moment On" by Shania Twain and Bryan White.

* * *

 **Chapter 1: Welcome to Watercress**

A bright sunny day is just beginning to dawn over the vast region of Sinnoh. The wind is calm, with nary a single leaf fluttering in the breeze. The tree branches too are still throughout the deep Eterna Forest and beyond into the forests in the northwestern corner of Sinnoh. Shortly after daybreak, various forest critters slowly emerge from their hiding places one by one. Squirrels, rabbits, chipmunks, and many a mess of other similar creatures scatter to and fro in search of food, new shelter, or simply something to do. Various Pokémon are scurrying about as well, including Rattatas, Bunearies, Pachirisus, Deerlings, and Pichus, among others. In addition to these smaller Pokémon are larger ones, such as Sawsbucks, Ursarings, and Manectrics.

One such Pokémon is a young male Leafeon named Leafy. He is seen making one of his early morning runs through the forest, searching for wild berries and vegetables to gather. He eventually stops at a small sitrus berry bush in a thicket. _"Excellent, just what I've been searching for: sitrus berries! They're rare around these parts of Sinnoh, but surely enough, I've found one!"_ he thinks, pausing for a moment to look heavenward in thankfulness before taking a pawful of the berries and returning to his den site with them.

Leafy's den site is not like your typical Eeveelution den site, or even that of a typical Leafeon's, for that matter. In addition to a den, he also has a small garden immediately adjacent to it, with several plants within it already in bloom, another even bearing fruit. Across from the garden a ways is his cooking area, consisting of a small rocky fire pit, a small pile of kindling and firewood, and some makeshift wooden tools he had carved himself over time. A couple hundred feet over to the west of the den site is the eastern shoreline of Lake Watercress. Leafy deliberately chose a lakeside location to grow his garden since the soil is naturally irrigated by the underground freshwater runoff, providing his crops with a rich constant supply of some of the purest spring water Sinnoh has to offer.

Upon arriving back at his den site with his tangy cargo in tow, Leafy happily consumes a couple of the larger sitrus berries as a small breakfast, saving the seeds to plant in his garden later in the day, most likely after his afternoon nap. He then stores the remaining sitrus berries in a small subterranean "cellar" he dug out beneath the back floor of his den, its floor covered in a thick layer of rocky gravel instead of soil to preserve moisture and stabilize the temperature better. As he exits the den, he sweeps the soil floor with his tail to tidy up a bit, not leaving until the place looks satisfactory enough by his standards. Pausing for a moment to gather his thoughts together on what to do next, he goes and sits under a large fir tree just beyond his fire pit, whittling away at a small piece of wood he plans to use for part of a rotisserie rack he had been planning on making for some time now.

Half an hour later, Leafy has finished that particular component and puts the piece away in a small burrow hidden near his fire pit before taking notice of the thick clouds rolling in overhead, a distant clap of thunder being heard shortly thereafter. Seeing this to be the perfect time for his daily afternoon nap, he heads into his den to rest as the storms blow through outside. A couple hours later, the storms have ended for the eastern shores of Lake Watercress, and a well-rested Leafeon reemerges from his den, having napped sufficiently for the day. The clouds above soon begin breaking up, the sun now shining brightly on the glistening lake waters below. This presents a sterling opportunity for Leafy to sun himself on his favorite rock, which he takes without a moment's hesitation. As he lies upon the rock, he looks out over the water's surface before him at a small rocky outcropping jutting out near the lake's center, almost as if to tempt him, as if to say: "Try as you might little Leafeon, but you're never gonna make it this far out to sun yourself on me!" Unamused at this prospect, Leafy challenges back, thinking with a slight smirk, _"I swear, one of these days – nay, very soon – I'm gonna swim all the way out there and sun on that rock!"_ With plans made and mind concluded, he closes his eyes and relaxes in the warm sunlight for a good long while.

As the sun hangs low on the horizon, another day draws to a close, with Leafy taking notice and trotting over to his fire pit for supper. He first takes some potatoes he left out in the rain purposely, since they were still covered in dirt prior to the storm's arrival. He skins them with a stone knife he had carved in days past, and then places them in a stone pot full of clean lake water suspended over the fire pit by a sturdy wooden rack. After gathering some dry wood from an auxiliary chamber in his den, he replaces the remaining wet wood currently in the fire pit with some of the dry wood, putting a bed of crisp brush below a thinner layer of kindling followed by a few medium logs and one larger one in the center upon the rest. To start the fire, he uses a piece of convex glass he found in the woods once. He then adds the remaining ingredients for his meal: some preserved rabbit flesh, chopped carrots, diced celery, minced onion, and a dash of black pepper, stirring everything periodically as needed. _"Yum… smells tasty!"_ he muses, his mouth watering with each passing minute.

Once dinner's been cooked and served, Leafy sits in front of a large flat stump, eating his food out of a big wooden bowl with a small wooden spoon. As he eats his meal, he begins feeling a passive sort of feeling slowly coming upon him. Looking across the stump, he notices just enough room for another to dine with him, but no one there actually doing so. He sighs, feeling truly lonely for the first time in his young life. His meal finished shortly thereafter, he puts his dirty dishes beside the fire pit, goes back to the stump, and kneels before it. _"Dear Lord, if it be your will, please help me find someone to care for and to care for me in return soon. It's getting rather lonely out here, and only now have I just realized this fact. I hope someday, I can look across this old stump here while I eat into the loving eyes of whichever Eeveelution girl you have planned for me. In Jesus' name, amen!"_ he prays silently with a humble heart and a quiet spirit. With the evening twilight nearly faded, he yawns and heads into his den for the night, curling up and sleeping peacefully, with the hopes of finding a mate still very much on his mind.


	2. The Depths of Watercress

**Chapter 2: The Depths of Watercress**

The pristine sanctuary of natural aquatic beauty that is Lake Watercress is fed by a single larger river and several smaller streams emanating from the high peaks of the local mountain range comprising the backbone of central Sinnoh, including the imposingly lofty Mt. Coronet. Its surface lying roughly several hundred feet above sea level and its lowest depths exceeding two hundred feet below sea level, the lake initially formed as the large glaciers over northern Sinnoh retreated following the last ice age over a millennium ago. The lake is filled with some of the purest naturally occurring water in the entire region, its waters teeming with much life, ranging from large schools of Magikarp and Feebas to the occasional Gyarados or Milotic. The surface itself was largely moss free, with many clusters of fresh watercress growing around the lake's periphery, hence its namesake. Occasionally, animals like Leafy and many other omnivores and herbivores would come to gather or graze upon the watercress and various similar semi-aquatic plants. Fish and insects of all kinds enjoyed feeding off it occasionally, too. Being an interior freshwater body, the temperature of the lake water was variably cool to cold year-round, but could get somewhat warm near the surface in the summer months. It was very common for the lake to freeze over at least once per winter, the ice being as thick as two to three feet in particularly frigid seasons. On a sunny spring day like today, though, the ice of winter had long melted away and gave way to the increased annual abundance of life the lake was long known for.

One of these many denizens is a young female Vaporeon name Aquamarine. This morning, she is seen swimming briskly several dozen feet beneath the surface of Lake Watercress. The brisk swim helps to both wake her up after a long night's sleep, as well as entertain her thoroughly as she performs loops, corkscrews, and even the occasional underwater barrel roll all around the lake's central photic zone. Around and around the lake she swims, playfully chasing the occasional Squirtle, Piplup, or Oshawott she encounters along the way. Most of them are highly familiar with Aquamarine's antics, and often welcome her presence, especially since as a local predator, she can help ward off and protect any other would-be predators for them whenever she's in the area. _"I'm gonna get ya silly Oshawott!"_ she thinks with a smirk, swimming faster and cutting corners until she quickly overtakes him, nipping his tail playfully. "Heh heh, you finally got me!" he says with a giggle. "Hey, you knew I was gonna getcha soon enough! There's no escaping this Vaporeon for long!" she replies, smiling widely. Together, they play around a while longer, swimming all the way near the dark bottom of the lake before quickly returning back up near the surface again. "Whew, that was some swim! Thanks a lot buddy!" she tells him. "No problem Aqua! I'll be here anytime ya wanna play or fish together!" he reminds her before returning to his lakeside home near the mouth of the adjacent river.

Having finished her daily morning exercise, Aquamarine decides it is good time to fish for breakfast. A couple medium-sized fish is more than enough to sustain her appetite, and within mere minutes, she has successfully rounded up her quota, placing the fish on the lakeshore and emerging from the lake onto dry land, shaking her fur off as she does so. _"All right, time to sushify these lil' fishies!"_ she determines, using her claws to carefully descale, skin, and debone the fish. Once that task is complete, she disposes of the remains, apportions the fillets into several smaller chunks each, salts them lightly, and wraps each piece in fresh watercress leaves. _"Perfect, just the way I like 'em!"_ she thinks, taking a single piece at a time and consuming each slowly to get the most out of every bite. Although she was certainly not a trained sushi chef by any means, one could agree that for a wild animal, she could definitely make a mean raw fish roll all her own not quite like anyone else, especially given the rather limited natural resources she had to create her recipes from.

Her breakfast gladly eaten through to the very last bite, Aquamarine heads back into the lake to converse with some of her lake friends for the rest of the morning and most of the afternoon. These friends consisted of a female Seadra, a female Swanna, and a male Skrelp. "Good morning Aqua! How're you doing today?" the Seadra greets her with a smile. "Oh, you know, same as usual. How 'bout you?" Aquamarine asks back. "Doin' quite swell myself! Glad you asked. Anything new happening with you lately?" the Seadra responds. "I'm afraid not, but that's all right. Rather the same things day in and day out than something new and unpleasant," Aquamarine answers candidly, floating on her back for a moment and staring into the blurry blue sky from underwater. "I'll be honest, though. I'd certainly welcome something new and interesting into my life if it were a truly good thing. Life's never full of enough of those I'd imagine, even a fairly peaceful one like mine," she adds. "True that, but if that were to happen Aqua… how exactly would you respond to it?" the Seadra notes, eagerly awaiting the next response from the Vaporeon. "Hmm… I'm not fully sure just yet, but knowing me, I'd probably embrace it with open arms and, well, just be myself, I guess. What else can I do better than that, you know?" Aquamarine states with a gentle chuckle, flicking her tail swiftly back and forth in the water in anticipation of such a possibility, almost as if to sense it looming on the horizon of her life. To this, the Seadra chuckles back. "Aqua girl, I sure hope something good befalls you soon, 'cause you deserve it for being such a good friend to me and others, too!" she tells Aquamarine, fluttering her fins happily in place for a moment. "All right then, thanks for the chat friend!" Aquamarine responds, grinning. She then bids the Seadra adieu and heads to the home of her Skrelp friend.

The Skrelp is still finishing up tidying his rocky abode when he notices a certain Vaporeon girl approaching him. "Oh, hey there Aqua. What brings you here today?" he asks, flicking away some loose silt from the ground below him with his tailfins. "Nothing special, just wantin' to talk for a bit, that's all," she tells him, smiling slightly. "Oh, well all right. So, what's up?" he says, dusting away some more silt periodically throughout their conversation. "Well, I talked with Seagana earlier, and she and I mentioned that perhaps sometime soon, something abnormally good might happen to me since I'm such a good person and friend and such. Plus, it's been so long since something truly special happened around here, we're due! What do you think? Do you agree?" she explains. Pausing to think for a moment, the Skrelp retorts, "I suppose so. You are a great friend to us, after all. You deserve it!" "Oh Skelly, I'm flattered, but do you really mean it? I'm inclined to believe you do!" an excited Aquamarine responds. "I think you already know the answer to that Aqua," Skelly hints with wink. "Yay! Thanks for thinking the same way!" Aquamarine states happily, nuzzling the small Skrelp suddenly, much to his surprise. "Heh, no problem!" Skelly assures her. After talking for a while longer about various other topics, Aquamarine says her goodbyes to Skelly for now, swimming up to the surface and across to the north side of the lake to where her last friend, the Swanna, lives.

Today, the Swanna finds herself preparing more bedding materials for her young cygnets to nest in. Humming to herself quietly, she is busy weaving some reeds into a pillow when she observes Aquamarine emerge from the water and approach her hastily. "Aqua, what a delight seeing you already at this hour. Are you in a rush to see me?" she inquires of her with a smile. "Not necessarily, but I am certainly excited to tell you this: I think something new and good's gonna happen to me soon, and Seagana and Skelly both agree! Isn't that great?" Aquamarine exuberantly exclaims. "Is that so? Well, I for one think that's a most lovely expectation to look forward to! I hope that regardless of whatever it is that happens, it's all you ever wanted it to be and more!" the Swanna wishfully remarks. "All I ever wanted… hmm, that's an intriguing new angle of this I never before considered 'til now. I appreciate the support though Swanita, certainly!" says Aquamarine in response. "The pleasure is mine, dear. Anytime!" Swanita speaks back, continuing hard at work on her reed weaving task. As with Seagana and Skelly before, Aquamarine stays a while to talk with Swanita about random subjects until eventually leaving later in the afternoon, taking a short afternoon swim before resting an hour or so afterwards in her underground den, which is conveniently connected on one end to the lake underwater, and on the other to the dry land above.

A rumbling belly reawakens Aquamarine, leading her to pursue more fish in the lake for dinner, this time leaving some extra fish out to dry in the sun while the rest is consumed the same way as before. The dried fish would become like a sort of fish jerky, which she would store in her own subterranean cellar of sorts, snacking on it periodically in the days ahead whenever needed. Dinner finished, she spends the rest of the day practicing a couple new swimming techniques of hers, improving noticeably from her efforts the previous session. As nighttime sets in, she returns to her den, prays, and curls up to sleep, dreaming all throughout the night of her hidden future.


	3. As Fate Would Have It

**Chapter 3: As Fate Would Have It**

Leafy awakens bright and early the next day, the sun barely even beginning to rise above the horizon. He yawns, stretches, and makes a couple quick runs around the nearby forest before harvesting a pawful of wild berries for breakfast. Well satiated, he takes a good long look across the lake's surface and eyes that one solitary rock jutting out of its center, the morning sunlight now gleaming upon it fully. _"Today's the big day: I'm swimming out there and sunning on that rock, or my name's not Leafy Leafeon!"_ he thinks with a confident smirk and a quick flick of the tail. Testing the temperature of the water, he decides to wait 'til later that afternoon when the sun's highest in the sky and the water's warmest to attempt his long swim across the open lake. It was a potentially treacherous feat for a lone land-dwelling Leafeon to traverse, since it was a rather exhausting swim and there were many aquatic predators lurking beneath the surface that could strike at any given moment. Being a grass-type, though, he was sure enough that he would be all right in undertaking his ambitious goal. Until then, he spent several hours working on his tool carving and rotisserie frame crafting, making more than adequate progress with each.

At last, the moment he had been waiting so patiently for arrived, the midday sun having fully attained its zenith. Seizing his golden opportunity promptly, Leafy whispered a short prayer under his breath before leaping headfirst into the lake at the point where the shallow water met the deeper water. He knew it would be a long swim, and thus braced himself for whatever physiological issues lie ahead of him. About halfway across to the rock, he started to feel the pressures of swimming such a distance take a toll on his body, his thighs starting to tighten up a bit. Slowing his pace to a gentle doggy paddle to relax his strained muscles, he drifted toward the rock little by little, ever grateful that the current was flowing in his desired direction. Upon entering the fifty foot threshold of the rock's vicinity, he thrusts himself forward and paddles ahead strongly, nearing the rock's windward side. Reaching out in front of himself, he grabs ahold of the rock's jagged edge, being careful not to scratch himself as he climbs onto the rock, having just enough room to stand triumphantly on top of it on all fours and howl. _"Yes, I finally did it! I knew I'd conquer this little rock someday, and ha, here I am!"_ he muses, wearing a satisfactory grin on his face. He then proceeds to lie down upon the rock and sun himself thoroughly, though doing so proves to be more than a bit tricky, since part of the rock's edge is jagged and the rock as a whole is somewhat small to maneuver well upon. He eventually manages to settle himself into a comfortable position, closing his eyes, clearing his mind, and letting the warmth of the sun's shimmering rays do the rest.

Incidentally, Aquamarine heard that howl from deep below the water's surface while she was fishing, and was so startled by it that she inadvertently lost track of what she was doing and let a couple stray fish escape that she was attempting to catch. "Darn it, they got away! Gr… still, what WAS that?!" she snarled softly, looking above toward the surface near the tip of the large rock spire in the middle of the lake. _"Hmm… looks like I'll have to postpone lunch for a little exploring. My curiosity demands it!"_ she thinks, swimming swiftly to the area near the rock's tip. Just as she nears breaking the surface, she notices something new that fascinates her to no end: a young male Leafeon resting peacefully on the rock. Stunned, she panics nervously at first and is unsure of how to proceed from here, her heartbeat racing and mind spacing, for she cannot think of anything but the strange sight before her. _"Could this be what I've been waiting so long now for? That mysterious something new I've been anticipating?"_ she ponders, drawing slowly nearer to Leafy from behind, ensuring that he does not notice her quite too soon. She had heard about Leafeons before, but had never actually seen one in person, let alone up close like this, her family not consisting of any Leafeons as far as she knew. It had been a few years since she had left them to go out on her own into the world as a young adult, though, and since a couple of her siblings had yet to evolve, it was very possible that at least one of them could have chosen to become a Leafeon, and if so, then she would likely not recognize them, at least at first.

Several minutes passed, and Aquamarine was still unsure of what to do. A part of her wanted to remain cautious, since she did not know exactly what kind of person she was dealing with here, even if a fellow Eeveelution. However, another part of her really wanted to just say "hi," and yet another part was purely curious to see how he would react to her presence. It was not until her playful side kicked in, though, before she attempted to make a move on the unsuspecting Leafeon. With an impish smirk on her face and a youthful twinkle in her eye, she positions herself just behind where he is resting, extends her forelegs outward, and tickles the undersides of his hindpaws. Almost instantaneously, Leafy yips and twitches his hindpaws, pulling them beneath the rest of his body and flicking his ears in annoyance. "Whoa, what the?!" he mutters, while Aquamarine giggles silently to herself and melds into the water around her, making her essentially invisible. Making sure that nothing was around to disturb him, Leafy wonders what it was that made him feel weird like that. He had never been tickled in a very long time, ever since he was just a young Eevee pup. So long, in fact, that he had practically forgotten he was even ticklish anywhere in the first place. Not wanting to waste any more time, he shrugs it off and continues sunning like he did before, this time keeping his hindpaws underneath himself for safekeeping.

Aquamarine continued to watch him as he sunned for the next several minutes, curious as to what other ways she might proceed to interact with this lonely Leafeon. _"I wonder…!"_ she thinks, moving in front of him while still invisibly camouflaged in the water. With much force, she sprays a small spurt of water in his face and stays put to observe his next reaction. "Ah, hey, cut it out!" Leafy shouts, standing up and now on full alert, searching the water around the rock for whatever it is that is causing him so much discomfort. He swings his head to the right, and seeing nothing abnormal, swings it over to the left, still noticing nothing unusual in the surrounding waters. _"Playin' the silent card, are ya? Well, let's see if you're expecting this, heh heh!"_ he muses, smirking slightly before resuming to sun in his hindpaw-protecting position. Though noticing Leafy's smirk, Aquamarine thinks nothing of it, waits a few more minutes, moves to his right blind side, and becomes visible once again, bending forward with her head and gently nipping his right ear boldly. However, as soon as she makes contact with him, Leafy suddenly lunges off the rock in her direction, falling on top of her in the water and stunning her briefly.

"Yikes!" Aquamarine exclaims in surprise, shaking off the stun and backing away from Leafy a few feet. "Ha, I just KNEW someone was messing with me! It wasn't just a bad hallucination," Leafy says, the two of them locking eyes with each other for the first time in their lives. "H… hi," Aquamarine stammers, unsure of what to say or do next and almost shivering in pure nervousness. "Well hello there Miss Vaporeon. What brings you to disturb my humble rocky abode today, hmm?" Leafy asks, his expression being more than a little irritated, especially since he was now wet and miserable compared to feeling warm and dry as he was only moments before. "Well, ya see, I was just swimming around searching for… I mean, what I meant to say is that I was fishing and heard you… oh, darn it, c'mon now, think straight!" Aquamarine struggles to reply, smacking her forepaws on her face in frustration, her pulse steadily increasing with each passing second. "Easy there, settle down. There's no need to be so hard on yourself. Now, take a deep breath and try to remember what it was that caused you to go bothering me earlier," he consoles her, still maintaining the conversation's focus on what had just occurred.

To this, Aquamarine pauses, takes a deep breath as per his recommendation, and gathers her thoughts before continuing, "Okay, here goes: I was fishing like usual further down in the lake when I heard a very distinctive howl. Since the two fishies I was pursuing escaped, I was determined to find out who was responsible for startling me and causing me to lose my quarry. When I saw it was a Leafeon that made the howl, I decided to stick around and, well… mess with ya a bit. It's all in fun though, I swear! I mean no harm by any of it!" Aquamarine whimpers softly to herself after explaining what happened to Leafy, hoping that he accepts her alibi. "All right, I'm willing to be understanding in all this. Time for a proper introduction!" Leafy begins, clearing his throat. "My name's Leafy. And you are?" "Aquamarine, though my friends usually call me Aqua for short," Aquamarine replies with a smile, her face still blushing beneath the fur. Leafy chuckles at this, splashing the water's surface with his tail and moving slightly closer to Aquamarine. "Aquamarine, is it? That's a very fitting name. Very pretty, too, I must admit. Of course, the fact that it is makes it even more fitting for you! Just like the rare gemstone, I'm sure you're a rare find all your own!" he states, smiling widely back at her, his face now slowly starting to blush a bit too under the fur. "Oh Leafy… thank you! That's the nicest thing anyone's ever said about my name before. One of the nicest about myself in general, too. And we've only barely met…," she responds, looking away coyly. A short pause occurs as the two of them decide what to do next.

Making the first move, Leafy swims back to the rock, climbs onto it again, and shakes his fur off thoroughly before lying on it again in his usual sunning position. "Well Aqua, there's just enough room here for one more Eeveelution. Care to oblige? It'd be my treat!" he offers Aquamarine, smiling and facing her with his head tilted at a slight angle – something she personally finds rather adorable. "S… sure! I'd love to!" she answers, nodding briskly and swimming over to the rock herself, ascending upon it and lying snugly beside him, her fur still rather moist in stark contrast to his now mostly dry fur. Leafy feels slightly awkward inside at first, then slowly begins to adjust to Aquamarine's presence and physical closeness. _"Could this girl really be the answer to my prayers? I dunno for sure just yet… but here's hoping!"_ he thinks, smiling slightly. Aquamarine, on the other paw, retains her nervousness as before, but it gradually wanes over time the longer she is with Leafy. _"This moment is so touching, so special. It's like nothing I've ever felt before. Could he be that new thing I've been waiting for? Could he be… the one?"_ she wonders, her mind brimming with possibilities of what may be between them in the many days ahead. Their thoughts running wildly and spirits being thoroughly uplifted, they spend the rest of the afternoon together sunning on that rock before eventually parting ways later that evening.


	4. Learning, Yearning, and Burning

**Chapter 4: Learning, Yearning, and Burning**

Over the coming weeks, Leafy and Aquamarine proceed in getting to know one another better, hanging out every single day. One evening, while Leafy was hosting Aquamarine in his territory, he showed her what fire was for the very first time in her life. From the first spark, her eyes widened and glowed ablaze with the reflection of the fire's flames. "It's just so very hot! Like a little sun or something. I've never seen or felt anything quite like it before. It's amazing, really," she remarks, playfully flicking a few droplets into the fire with her tailfins to sizzle up some steam. "Heh, yeah, you could say that. I'm no Flareon though, so I've gotta be extra careful around these things," Leafy says with a chuckle. Giggling, Aquamarine responds, "Yeah, I'll bet!" For supper, Leafy decides to cook up his latest specialty: spiced rotisserie rabbit stew with mixed vegetables and a tangy sitrus berry juice marinade. "Mmm… it's absolutely delicious! Best meal I've had yet, for sure!" she tells him, licking her lips and taking another bite. "Believe it or not, this is actually only the second time I've ever prepared this dish. It's probably the most complex one I've created so far," he informs her honestly. "Well, I'd say it's a rather superb second attempt. I rate it five Starlies!" she retorts. Together, they finish their meal, sharing many stories of their puphoods with one another as they do so.

Another day, Aquamarine decides to welcome Leafy to her domain, including both the underwater and dry regions in and around Lake Watercress that she often frequents. She tours him around her damp underground den, through the dark subterranean tunnels leading from there to the lake, and into the lake depths of the lake itself, teaching him how to hold his breath and swim underwater unaided as they go. He is uneasy about it all to start, but warms up to it once he has practiced it sufficiently. "Don't worry, you'll get used to swimming up to the surface every few minutes to breathe. At least we Vaporeons can naturally hold our breaths to over an hour at a time if needed. I know many hidden spots where you can catch a quick breath underwater, though, so hopefully you won't have to return to the surface too much," she assures him. "Oh, thank God. Care to show me where some of those particular spots are, please?" he requests politely. "Sure thing. Follow me," she answers, taking a deep breath and leaping into the underground entrance to the lake, with Leafy imitating her behavior, albeit somewhat hesitantly. She leads him to a series of alcoves, some of which are devoid of water and in fact contain small pockets of air in its place. Later, she introduces him to a few of her submarine friends, including Seagana and Skelly. They have good conversations with them, Leafy introducing himself to each in his own special way.

They finish off the day by lying back on that same lonely rock projecting out of the lake's center, with Leafy observing just how big the rock really is, lying on its own in a raised portion of the lakebed. As they lie side by side with tails cutely entwined, they stare into the sunset, enjoying the naturally beauteous scene before them. Remembering how they originally met at this same spot some weeks ago, Leafy gets a familiar impish idea of his own to get back at Aquamarine with. "Uh, Aqua, could you do me a small favor?" he asks, smiling at her handsomely. "Now how could I ever say 'no' to a face like that?" she replies, smiling and awaiting whatever this little favor happens to be. "Well, I'd like you to peer into the water over there and see how deep the twilight penetrates into the lake water. I've never checked that out before myself, but I'm really not in the mood to get my face all wet again," he explains. Accepting the request, Aquamarine shifts her body over to one side of the rock, bends forward slightly, and dips her head into the lake enough to see clearly into it, gazing at the slowly fading sunbeams piercing with all due futility into the watery depths, the surface being pitch black in the lowest parts. Seizing the prime opportunity for playful payback, Leafy orients himself behind Aquamarine, reaches out, and tickles her hindpaws just as she once did to him. She yips almost on contact, losing her balance and slipping into the lake in total surprise. "Ha ha, hey, watch it buster!" she remarks with a smirk, spraying a weak bubble beam into his face. "I guess in hindsight, I kinda did deserve that, but still!" she protests, climbing back onto the rock again beside him as he shakes his fur off. "At least now I know which of the two of us is more ticklish, heh!" Leafy utters partially under his breath, but clearly loud enough for Aquamarine to still here. "All right, I'll admit it: I'm sort of a tickle magnet once people recognize how sensitive my body can really be. I got tortured more than enough as a pup, though I was probably even more ticklish than that now, if you can believe that," she discloses. "I'd say that's true for most any Eeveelution really, except maybe Jolteons since they become highly sensitive electric-types. I know I was once very ticklish too, just like you were," he articulates back, flicking his tail gently against her forelegs. "Right… well, I really enjoyed today Leafy. I can't wait for tomorrow! And the next day, and the next one too, and probably even the one after that!" she states happily. "Me too Aqua, me too. See you then!" he bids her farewell. They go their own separate ways from there, but can't help but think and dream about the other all while they are apart, even if it is only for a single night.

Some weeks after that, Leafy and Aquamarine find themselves sunning on that same rock like times before, when suddenly, an unexpected summer storm comes upon them, with a mighty gust front sweeping across the lake's surface, sending waves crashing every which way and the two Eeveelutions to be greatly startled, nearly being blown clear into the water by the wind. "Hold on!" Leafy yells, holding Aquamarine tightly close to him as they hunker down together while the wind blows over, escaping into the depths below and swimming to Aquamarine's secret underground den. "Wow, now _that_ was something! Don't you think Aqua?" Leafy asks her, chuckling slightly and shaking his fur off. "Yeah, it sure was," she agrees, lying on a soft bed of dry mud and foliage on the far side of the den. While the storm rages back at the surface, they spend their time discussing their personal interests, peeves, and beliefs, with topics ranging from simple matters (like favorite color and food) to more abstract ones (such as the purpose of life, love, and faith). On some issues, they had differing opinions, such as what their favorite protein was (venison for him and fish for her) and their favorite hobbies (tool making for him and swimming for her), but on the most important things in life, they rather fortunately agreed, culminating in the fact that they were both strong Christians. That discovery, they would later find, would be the single greatest similarity between them, as they would be able to thoroughly help build one another up in their faith during the many years to come.

As the weeks turned into months and the seasons changed from summer to autumn, then from fall to winter, and again from winter to spring, the bond between them grew stronger and stronger, progressing well beyond mere acquaintanceship and even beyond close friendship. They had developed a kinship quite like nothing either of them had ever felt or experienced before in all their young lives, and Leafy felt that it was growing high time for him to make a move on Aquamarine – one that would forever secure their love for one another in the most special sacred way possible. He had heard about this once before, in a certain book he had been told stories from as a pup, and one that he still possessed a copy of today, tucked away in a dry hollow pit deep beneath the lowest parts of his personal den. To help refresh his memory of the concept, he dug up the tattered old book from below his den and brought it outside to read in the waning twilight of a chilly early spring evening. Clearing his throat, he read from a small portion of the text aloud to himself quietly, but only when he was sure Aquamarine was still gone fishing for their dinner that night. "'Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.' – Genesis 2:24. Hmm… it would seem that this verse implies that it's both good and normal for most guys to fall in love with a girl at some point. Well, I think it's time for her and I to take the next step, but I'll have to ask her to first just in case. I already know what she'll say though, heh! Oh boy, I can't wait! I'll ask her the first day of spring. I'll have to check my dirt calendar to be sure," he tells himself, feeling giddy inside at the very thought of doing so. After checking the date, he braces himself and waits patiently until that big day finally arrives, with much excitement and anticipation within him.


	5. Holy Eeveelution Matrimony

**Chapter 5: Holy Eeveelution Matrimony**

A new day dawns over Lake Watercress. The morning dew is thick and abundant, and many a small critter is scurrying about, taking advantage of the early spring weather to scout for new territory to occupy. For Leafy, though, today would be the day he asks Aquamarine to be his lifelong mate. Essentially, he would be asking her to marry him, though it would be officiated by no other than God Himself, which is the only One that truly matters in this particular affair, since they were basically wild animals instead of humans or even domesticated ones. It would be done similarly to how Adam and Eve were originally "married" by no one else other than the Lord. For them and their purposes, that was more than enough.

Knowing Aquamarine's morning patterns like the back of his paw, Leafy waits for her to meet him by the lakeshore for breakfast as usual, typically consisting of her pawcrafted fish sushi and his homemade berry fruit salad. With a mouthful of fish, she emerges from the water and approaches him. "Fishies caught and ready to be sliced!" she says cutely with her mouth still full of fish. "All right, well I'll take 'em from here. You can help me out if you'd like," he mentions, taking the fish from her and carrying them over to the fire pit area. They prepare the fish and berries, sit together at the large stump table nearby, and enjoy a tasty wild breakfast together. Afterwards, Leafy just sits there and stares at her, remembering the first time he wished there was another dining with him on the other side. She notices this, and reciprocates the gesture with an equivalent gesture, staring straight back into his eyes. With the early morning sun brightly shining in Aquamarine's eyes, Leafy sees his reflection in her pupils, almost as if to say, "You were meant for me, and I was meant for you!" As for her, she feels quite the same herself, although she was still not completely sure if he was willing to fully commit to her yet or not. She sure hoped so though, with all her heart, but she knew it was ultimately his decision to make, not hers, since it would be that much more meaningful for her if that were indeed the case. They stayed a little while longer and enjoyed the special little moment before eventually carrying on with the rest of the day together as per Leafy's recommendations. This seemed a bit strange to Aquamarine, since they normally split up 'til lunchtime most every other day, but today was different. However, that was still for him to know and her to find out, since it might have simply been him wanting to spend more time with her, understandable since they were the very dearest of friends. In their hearts, though, they knew they were soon about to become much more than that, inside and out.

After having a splendid luncheon under the midday sun together, Leafy seems noticeably excited to be with Aquamarine, and as she wonders why this is true, he takes her by the paw and leads her toward the lake. "Aqua, shall we head to our favorite sunning spot now? I've got something, well… extra special planned for today!" he suggests with a big smile and a wagging tail. "I thought I sensed something was up with you today, but I never imagined you actually had a gift for me! It's not my birthday or anything, after all. Sure, I'd be delighted to sun with you right now!" she responds modestly. Side by side, they swim out to the rock in the lake's center, their hearts beating rapidly in unison and eager anticipation, rife with youthful vigor.

There, Leafy asks if Aquamarine notices anything different about the rock this time, to which she pauses, examines it carefully, and notices "L + A 4EVER!" within a large heart engraved on the rock's leeward side. "Oh Leafy… it's wonderful!" she remarks, blushing under her facial fur and turning her head partly to one side. "For you my dear, it's simply a small token of my appreciation for all you've done for me and will continue to do for me for many years to come!" he replies, blushing slightly himself and smiling wider than ever. "All right now Aqua, close your eyes," he speaks, and once she has done so and he is sure she is not peeking, he waits for a strong enough gust of wind and uses his razor leaf technique in such a way that creates a temporary spiral of leaves that revolve around the rock like a leafy tornado. "Okay, look!" he tells her. "Wow, that's so cool Leafy! How'd you do that? Wait… close _your_ eyes now, and let me see what I can do!" she asks of him, to which he does so affirmatively. Pondering exactly how to proceed, she builds up enough confidence, focuses, and uses her bubble beam technique to create a spiraling tower of bubbles that intermingle with Leafy's leaves, creating a spellbinding scene before them as leaves and bubbles alike spin continuously around them for several minutes.

Opening his eyes again, Leafy states, "Aqua, that's brilliant! See, whatever I do well, you make it even better, and all on your own, too. Which is why…," he stands up on his hind legs to kneel before her on one knee, "…I wanna ask you, Aquamarine, to be my mate forever and ever! Aqua, will you… m… marry me?!" His body tense, heart racing, and eyes full of a loving gaze of uncertainty and yearning at her, she pauses, takes in the entire enchanting moment with a deep breath and much composure, looks straight back into his eyes, and answers, "Yes Leafy, I do! I really do!" He immediately leaps into the air, yips loudly, and lands on all fours, his tail wagging like crazy and heart pounding with joy. "YES!" he yells, his demeanor overflowing with excitement. He then locks eyes with her again, this time reaching forward with his head and kissing Aquamarine tenderly on the lips, their tails entwining amorously as they do so. Afterwards, they spend the remainder of their afternoon resting peacefully together on that rock, this time as lifelong lovers instead of just best friends.

That night, the full moon shone down brightly upon Lake Watercress. Bathing together in both the lake and moonbeams, Leafy and Aqua share a wonderful time swimming and washing off for some time, playfully splashing water in each other's face periodically. Following this, they dry off and have a romantic dinner of freshly seared fish and filet of venison, a special entrée Leafy had been marinating for the past few days to a perfect tenderized version of its former self. "So Aqua, how is it? Did I do well again this time?" he asks her between bites. "Leafy, you've never made anything better yet! You're such a great chef darling. A natural, even. Keep it up!" she replies, grinning and taking another bite for herself.

At the end of the night, they head into Leafy's den, which is now their den, with Aquamarine's old abode becoming their auxiliary den for emergencies or whenever they felt like hanging out there instead. Deep within the heart of the subterranean soil structure, one thing led to another as youthful Eeveelution hormones overtook the two, and they spent the remainder of their first long night of passion deeply ensnared in each other's loving arms, their love for one another virtually unparalleled. As far as they were concerned, the night could have lasted eternally, tomorrow never coming, and they would have honestly been perfectly content with that.


	6. Danger Beckons

**Chapter 6: Danger Beckons**

Just a few days after their permanent decision to become committed lifelong mates, Leafy and Aquamarine were having a lively afternoon chat by the lake's shore when a gentle gale swept over the water's surface – a sign that a small rainstorm would soon be upon them. Since it was only rain rather than a thunderstorm or squall, they decided they would endure it willingly, the cool rain feeling rather refreshing after an unusually warmer early spring day. It was calm throughout the rainstorm, with barely the slightest breeze to be felt, the rain falling steadily in a stream of small droplets for hours. Near the end of it all, though, Leafy caught the downwind scent of what he initially perceived to be some sort of harmless aquatic lifeform, such as a Wartortle or Marshtomp. It would not be too much longer before he knew the truth about what it really was, though: trouble.

Moving into the area from the oceanic coastline some twenty-five miles to the southwest of Lake Watercress, an imposing reptilian figure skulked around the lake shore for prey: a huge male Feraligatr. He had been searching for a stable source of prey for weeks now, and had only recently discovered the beauteous freshwater ecosystem that is Lake Watercress, its vicinity teeming with much life. Today, he had decided, would be the day he officially "moved in" to the area, having scouted several times before and witnessing a wide variety of potential prey both around and within the lake. Keeping a relatively low profile, he crawls on his belly along the southern lake shore on alert for any reasonable quarry.

The longer Leafy smelled the scent, the more he tried to convince himself it was not a potential threat, until he could deny it no longer: that scent was foreign, and had the stench of something unmistakably reptilian about it. _"Oh no… don't tell me it's a dragon. I don't have much I could do against one of those, and neither does Aqua as far as I can tell. Unless…,"_ he thinks, turning to face her before asking, "Aqua, do you happen to know any ice techniques?" "Uh, yeah, I think so. Aurora beam and icy wind for sure, at this point. Why do you ask?" she responds, cocking her head slightly to one side in curiosity. "Because I'm starting to think that there might be a dragon around here somewhere. You smell that?" Leafy asks, sniffing the air in the direction of the distant Feraligatr. "Yeah, I do now," Aquamarine confirms, keeping a watchful eye on the surrounding beach.

Swimming in the nearby waters, Skelly and Seagana are having a relaxing time feeding on freshwater prawns together. "Mmm… these prawns are scrumptious!" Skelly comments, with Seagana wholeheartedly agreeing as she takes a bite out of another prawn. Suddenly, the Feraligatr dives into the lake directly above them and approaches them rapidly, getting a speed boost from a quick burst of aqua jet. "Whoa, incoming!" Skelly shouts, barely dodging the Feraligatr's initial lunge. "Seagana, move, now!" he yells, frantically trying to swim to the surface and scan the shore for any sign of Aquamarine or Leafy. Spotting them not too far ahead, he gives Seagana the cue to distract the Feraligatr however she can while he gets help from their friends. "Got it!" she responds, facing the Feraligatr as he makes a return pass. "Can't catch me you overgrown lizard!" she snidely remarks before initiating a small whirlpool around herself, dizzying the Feraligatr a bit and giving her the chance she needs to attempt an escape in the opposite direction Skelly swam. Soon thereafter, the big bullish beast breaks free of the rotating current and gives chase after the fleeing Seadra.

Leafy and Aquamarine continue to search for any further sign of the mysterious reptilian intruder when Skelly emerges from the lake's surface as close as he can to them without inadvertently beaching himself. "Aqua, Leafy, come quick! There's a big bad Feraligatr trying to eat me and Seagana!" he cries out worriedly. "Really?! Where?" Aqua asks him, entering the nearby waters around the small Skrelp. "Not too far from here. Come, follow me!" he continues, wasting no time in heading back to where he and Seagana were feeding moments before. "Leafy, follow us along the shore as best you can!" Aquamarine tells him, diving into the lake just behind Skelly. "Will do baby, but please be safe!" he advises her while making his way along the lakeshore, paralleling her path in the water almost perfectly.

A minute later, Aquamarine and Skelly arrive at the place he and Seagana first encountered the hostile Feraligatr. Not seeing Seagana or the reptile anywhere in the vicinity, he scans the distant lakebed and sees the two squaring off in the shallower depths. "Hurry, this way!" he alerts Aquamarine, leading her over to the fight scene. Back on the surrounding shore, Leafy resumes indirectly following their progress, though the shore is starting to meander farther and farther from where Aquamarine and Skelly are heading. Seeing her friends fast approaching ahead of her, Seagana lures the Feraligatr toward a small reef about halfway between her present location and the shoreline, making it considerably more difficult for him to follow her while flitting in and out of cover. "All right, Skelly, do whatever you can to help Seagana here. I'm gonna head around to the opposite side and flank the savage from the rear," Aquamarine states, doing just that as Skelly fulfills his end of the deal by spraying spurts of poisonous toxins at the Feraligatr, distracting him and forcing him to dodge at the risk of being poisoned.

Knowing full well she cannot feasibly take on a rampaging Feraligatr alone and expect to emerge victorious, Aquamarine takes a cue from Seagana and decides to attract the Feraligatr's attention. "Hey you big blue bully, if you want a piece of me, come and get it!" she shouts, quickly gaining his attention. With the Feraligatr now on fast approach, Aquamarine swims away from the reef and straight toward where Leafy is, alerting him to what is happening and vanishing into water right before the big lizard impacts her head-on. To this, Leafy takes over, challenging the beast blatantly. "Stay away from my mate and take on someone more risky you jerk, if you dare!" he calls out at the Feraligatr, easily provoking the already highly provoked as he exits the lake and comes ashore to face his newest contender.

After roaring to signal his imminent assault, the Feraligatr makes the first move, lunging toward Leafy with an ice fang attack. Leafy narrowly escapes harm and counters with a powerful razor leaf, doing only superficial damage to some parts of the Feraligatr's thick hide but causing deeper cuts on others. Bleeding, the Feraligatr bellows deeply and viciously snaps at Leafy with a few powerful crunches, one of which barely grazes Leafy's tail and tears off some fur and skin. "Ah!" Leafy winces. "That hurt, but not as much as this will!" he adds, using giga drain on the Feraligatr to weaken it a bit and healing his own wounds in the process. "Leafeon fight well, but Leafeon die easily to mighty Feraligatr! Mwah ha!" the Feraligatr remarks smugly, faking a lunge to Leafy's left before suddenly aqua jetting to the right, tackling Leafy to the ground as he attempted to evade and pinning him, being of a much heavier weight than his victim. "Aqua!" Leafy yells as the Feraligatr exacts vengeance on the poor Leafeon with an ice fang to the back of the neck. Leafy yelps loudly and starts to feel faint from a potentially lethal combination of that attack plus all the weight crushing on him from above.

"Leafy!" Aquamarine responds, bursting out of the water and leaping onto the Feraligatr's back, biting down as hard as she could into the beast's neck. To this, the Feraligatr staggers backwards a few steps and attempts to dislodge his Vaporeon hitchhiker by shaking and twisting his body around wildly. Leafy slowly begins to recover, using synthesis to heal himself greatly and get back on his feet. Thinking smart once more, the Feraligatr backs up against a tree and reverse body slams Aquamarine into it, giving her a bad concussion on impact and knocking her out instantly, her limp body sliding to the ground weakly. "Heh, stupid Vappy go bye-bye to big strong Feraligatr!" the blue brute gloats, grinning unforgivingly. "NO!" Leafy screams uncontrollably, rushing straight at the Feraligatr and driving a razor-sharp leaf blade deep into his gut, causing serious super-effective damage, blood gushing everywhere, including onto most of Leafy's face, chest, and back. "GUWAH!" the beast roars in pain, grabbing some nearby branches from a tree and using them to put pressure on his otherwise open wound. "You… leave this place now… and _NEVER_ return! Understood?" Leafy snarls under his breath, a look of pure savagery upon his own normally peaceful face. "Gr… so be it. Leafeon win today. Feraligatr win tomorrow, but somewhere else as promised! Leafeon earn Feraligatr's respect. Me leave now," the Feraligatr concedes, lumbering away as quickly as he came, never to be seen again in or near all of Lake Watercress henceforth.

Wasting no more time than needed, Leafy hurries over to Aquamarine's side with a few sitrus berries he frantically gathered from a nearby bush, force-feeding them to her unconsciously. "Aqua, wake up! Please Aqua… oh God, don't tell me I've lost her!" Leafy whimpers, tears rolling down his face. Every passing second seems like eons to Leafy in this moment, his countenance as sad as any Leafeon could ever be and his heart sinking deep into grave anguish. He does not lose all hope, though, for his sincere faith in the Lord keeps him from doing so. "God, please… hear me out. I love this girl with all my heart, and I feel she's a literal gift from you to me, and I to her. Please, even if this is the last prayer you ever answer for me, let her live! Be with us both Lord, always… whether in this life or the next. Amen," he prays out loud softly to himself, choking up several times, especially at the end. A full minute having already passed since he first fed her the sitrus berries, Leafy nearly feels like dying himself, when suddenly, it happens: Aquamarine steadily begins recovering consciousness, the first visible sign being when she slowly opens her eyes and sees Leafy bawling next to her. "Leafy…," she utters, smiling faintly and licking a fresh tear from his face. Straightaway, he opens his eyes and smiles wider than he ever has in his entire life thus far. "Aqua, oh thank God, you're all right! You're back! With me… oh Lord, THANK YOU!" Leafy exclaims vociferously, wagging his tail uncontrollably and hugging her tighter than ever before. She barks happily and nuzzles Leafy, holding him close to her too, wagging her tail weakly as she does so. "Thanks for saving my life baby. I likely wouldn't be here without you," Leafy admits. "Same here, honey. Same here," Aquamarine confesses. "I hope I never lose you like that, especially to some stupid Feraligatr!" Leafy adds, licking Aquamarine's face tenderly. "Me too! I'd never wanna lose you like that, ever! I hope to God that remains forever the case," she agrees, nuzzling and licking Leafy's face all the same. "Come my love, let's have a celebratory feast! My treat!" Leafy announces while getting back up and reaching his dominant forepaw out to Aquamarine. "Oh Leafy, I'd love that! Most definitely I would!" she says, smiling warmly, taking Leafy's forepaw, and getting back on her own feet with his help.

As another day at Lake Watercress comes to a close, Leafy and Aquamarine have sufficiently filled their bellies with much delicious gourmet cooking from each other, made possible only by their working together as a single culinary preparing unit like a pair of wild canine chefs. They are now resting peacefully for the night in their den together, retroactively discussing their meal. "That was one of the most tender delectable meals I've had yet! Brilliant! You did well Leafy. Like a true cooking champion," Aquamarine praises him. "Thanks sweetie, that means a lot to me, but remember, it's us that worked together, for what true chef would ever forget to credit his number one assistant?" Leafy notes, chuckling slightly. "I hope you've got a little room left for an extra special dessert I've had planned that's the tastiest thing you'll ever consume, and it's on the house, too!" he continues, smirking naughtily. "I know that look, and I wonder… could this 'extra special dessert' of which you speak be the priceless confectionary creation known as candy kisses?" she inquires cleverly, smirking naughtily in return all her own. "Well, let's find out, shall we?" he obliges, pouncing playfully upon his mate with all due affection taking over him, making out with Aquamarine all the night long (and making a little something else too, for those readers old enough to know, heh). Tonight, their love for one another is stronger than ever before, and Heaven only knows that it will only continue to grow stronger in the days, months, and years ahead: the sign of a truly blessed loving mateship and marriage.


	7. Forthcoming Generational Shift

**Chapter 7: Forthcoming Generational Shift**

Two weeks have now passed since the incident with the Feraligatr occurred. The morning begins bright and early on a pleasant May day, the skies clear to the horizon and the air crisp with a gentle moist coolness from the lake's proximity. Aquamarine is up earlier than usual at the crack of dawn, Leafy still fast asleep. However, shortly after awakening, she notices something unusual: her monthly period that would normally happen on roughly the last day of the first full week of the month did not begin on schedule. _"That's weird. This hasn't ever happened to me before ever since I started having them. I hope everything's all right…,"_ she thinks, explaining the situation to Leafy as soon as he wakes up. "That does sound strange. Are you sure this hasn't happened before?" he asks, making sure to cover all his bases with this before making any conclusive judgment calls. "Yeah, positive. Perhaps we should wait 'til tomorrow to see if it still doesn't start?" she suggests. "Good idea, we'll do that. I hope everything's okay, especially since that dumb Feraligatr did a number on you a couple weeks ago," he notes, sighing at the thought of any residual damage to his wife's body. They spend the rest of the day postulating on any further reasons this might have happened.

The next day, the results remain the same: Aquamarine still has not begun her monthly period. "Honey, this is worrisome. I think we should ask someone else more knowledgeable than us about such a matter. Another mammal, too, and female at that, since this seems to be something only you guys experience," Leafy explains. "Say, I know someone that could be perfect for the job. There's this elderly Floatzel I met by the riverbank one day a couple years ago not too long after I first discovered this place. We're good friends now, and I'd bet an entire sitrus berry bush she'd likely know something about this. C'mon, let's go!" he states excitedly, leading Aquamarine about a quarter mile up the river from the point it converges into Lake Watercress.

Arriving at a small den by the riverbank, Leafy acknowledges that they are at their destination and enters the mouth of the den with Aquamarine right behind him. "Florence, it's me, Leafy! Remember?" he calls into the den, waiting patiently for a response. Surely enough, an older-looking female Floatzel walks carefully toward the entrance of the den, a bright smile lighting up her white-muzzled face. "Hello Leafy, it's been quite some time since we last met. I see you and Aquamarine are still together, just as you mentioned previously. Are you two mates now?" Florence inquires, offering her paw for Aquamarine to shake. "Pleased to meet you ma'am!" Aquamarine says as she graciously shakes her paw, smiling. "Why, such manners! What a fine young lady you've been blessed to have, Leafy! You should be forever grateful for her," Florence advises. "Oh yes, I'm certainly most grateful for her, to God most of all. We're indeed mates now, as you already surmised. We actually came to visit you to ask you an important personal question about Aqua. Baby, go ahead and ask her it, if you please," Leafy states.

"Sure thing honey. Anyway, Florence, yesterday morning, I woke up and discovered that I had skipped my monthly period, which always usually occurs the last day of the first week of each month. That's always been the case since I first started having them couple years back, and I found it very unusual that I had neither the scent of it nor the urge to expel it. Today, the same thing happened, and we're wondering if something's wrong with my body or if this is somehow normal. So, Florence, do you have any idea as to how or why this is occurring to me?" Aquamarine questions with a long sigh, looking over at Leafy for comfort. "Hmm… is this the first time this has happened since you first became committed mates to one another?" Florence asks. "Why yes, I do believe it is. Does that matter?" Aquamarine replies. "That depends… I assume you two have already been trapped in the clutches of deep romantic passion at least once since that time?" Florence wisely inquires, a small smirk creeping upon her face. "Oh, heh heh, well… yeah. What do you naturally expect, really? We're young, in love, and share the same den now, so yeah. Multiple times now, too, in case you're wondering about that as well," Leafy reveals, chuckling in slight embarrassment and blushing beneath his facial fur along with Aquamarine. "Just as I suspected, then. I do believe the answer to your problem is none other than this: Aquamarine, you're pregnant! There's no other logical explanation for this, I'd imagine. That's the best my elderly instinct would say, though. I had a mate myself for many years before he eventually passed on to the next life around the time you would've been just a young pup, Leafy. Of old age, thankfully, rather than due to predators or disease," Florence concludes, Leafy's and Aquamarine's jaws dropping at the word _pregnant_.

A moment of awkward silence ensues before Leafy eventually gets the gumption to speak up. "You mean… Aqua and I are gonna be parents?!" he queries, still stunned at that prospect being true. "Gonna be? You already are, Leafy. Life does begin at conception, after all. As your elder, I can assure you both of that very fact," Florence expresses honestly. "This news… it's amazing! It's exciting! It's almost hard to believe, but Leafy, we're parents! Parents, Leafy! P-A-R-E-N-T-S! Can you believe it?!" Aquamarine remarks hysterically, shaking almost uncontrollably with pure excitement. "Yeah, it's awesome! I can't wait to live life as a complete family, heh!" Leafy exuberantly proclaims. "Well, I wish the best for you both in doing so. If you ever need a pupsitter, come see me sometime and just let me know. I'll do my best, despite it being many years since I last raised a litter myself," Florence offers, giving the two a pair of rare berries, one wacan berry and one yache berry. "Cultivate a hefty crop of those, and you'll be well protected against two of your most common type weaknesses, respectively. Godspeed Leafy and Aquamarine, and may your heavenly faith light your path and your love for one another forevermore!" Florence blesses them, giving them each an approving hug before bidding them farewell for the day.

The rest of day comes slowly for Leafy and Aquamarine, as they begin discussing all their future plans for their expected children. From names to games, feeding to reading, and teaching to preaching, their conversations cover a broad range of family-oriented topics. Leafy also takes time to plant the two berries they received from Florence, as well as some sitrus berries, too. "You can never have too many sitrus berries, as I've always said. They're basically free healing items, in addition to a key ingredient to many tasty meals," Leafy says while discussing his primary reasons for gardening with Aquamarine. His secret technique is to use his natural grass powers to stimulate growth in his crops so they bloom and bear fruit much faster than usual, while Aquamarine waters them with her own natural water powers combined with an abundant source of local fresh water in Lake Watercress, assuming it has not rained too much lately. Individually, either one of those techniques would be rather ingenious, but together, they are a truly winning cultivation combination. "Leafy," Aquamarine says while watering a few of the vegetable plants already growing there, "do you really think we'll do well at raising our pups? I'm still a bit nervous about it all, 'cause you really only get one chance per litter to do it right." "Hey, I'm confident in our abilities as both marriage partners and parents, so I believe we'll do just fine. Remember that as long as we remain faithful to Him, God will lead our way through life in all things, big and small," Leafy reminds her, giving her a loving nuzzle between examining plants for any signs of blemish or blight. "Yeah, I know. We'll continue to trust in Him always, no matter what!" Aquamarine chimes cheerily, finishing watering the row she is currently on and beginning the next.

That night, after another wonderful dinner from scratch as always, the two young Eeveelution mates decide to finish marking the occasion of identifying Aquamarine's pregnancy by reading a small Bible passage together curled up by the fire. "'Behold, children are a heritage from the Lord, the fruit of the womb a reward. Like arrows in the hands of a warrior are the children of one's youth. Blessed is the man who fills his quiver with them! He shall not be put to shame when he speaks to his enemies in the gate.' – Psalms 127:3-5. Interesting… children are, according to this, a reward. I couldn't agree more Aqua! How about you?" Leafy reads, pausing to await his mate's answer. "Totally baby!" she replies, yipping briefly and flicking her tail playfully against his. "Heh heh, all right. Well, that concludes our nightly Bible reading. On this note, I believe we should go celebrate the means by which we originally conceived our pups, don't you Aqua?" Leafy hints, suggestively growling under his breath and winking at Aquamarine. "You know I can't resist ya you lovable furball you!" Aquamarine replies, giggling like a big pup herself. After putting the fire out safely for the night, the two playfully trot over to their den together and fulfill their loving desires for one another, eventually passing out in each other's arms. With their plans for the future decided upon and their desire for one another and their imminent pups stronger than ever, their lives seem to be headed in the right direction, God Himself being their faithful guide from on high as they journey to life's next destination for them. No matter what might come upon them, whether good or bad, one thing was certain: they would find a way to get through it all no matter what, for even in death, all things shall be made new for God's faithful!

 **The End!**


End file.
